In less than seven months, Lester Hudson received a hands-on education from one of the most talented basketball organizations in the NBA. He practiced against future Hall of Famers, received coaching from former pros, and learned the ropes behind an emerging All-Star.

The rookie gained more knowledge in a few short months than some players do in an entire season.

Now Hudson, who was waived by the Celtics last Wednesday, looks forward to applying what he learned from the C’s on to the court for the Grizzlies. The Memphis native was claimed off of waivers by his hometown team on Friday.

‘I was very sad, very sad when the Celtics let me go,’ he told WEEI.com in a telephone interview. ‘But I’m very happy to play back in my hometown.’

‘I learned a lot from (Rajon) Rondo,’ he said. ‘He’s my best friend on the team I’d say, so I learned a lot. He’s a great point guard. I think he’ll be an All-Star this year, so it was great playing behind him, learning how he ran the floor, ran the offense, and got everyone in position. That was my biggest thing coming in as a point guard, learning how to run an NBA team, and he helped me out with that.’

Hudson also received proven advice from the Celtics coaching staff. Both head coach Doc Rivers and director of basketball development Tyronn Lue are former NBA point guards. Hudson worked closely with Lue during practice.

‘It was great having Ty Lue there,’ he said. ‘He was a great point guard in the NBA and he taught me how to be aggressive, coming off the pick-and-roll, stuff like that, just trying to make the plays for the other guys. He helped me out a lot.’

Many of the Celtics have reached out to Hudson since he was waived, including Rondo and Marquis Daniels. Lue and assistant coach Mike Longabardi have contacted him as well.

Hudson does not harbor any ill will toward the team that selected him with the 58th pick in the 2009 NBA draft. He averaged just 4.4 minutes in 16 games for the Celtics and had also spent time in the D-League. Hudson understood the Celtics decision to waive him before they would have had to guarantee his contract.

‘They said it was a hard decision,’ he said. ‘They didn’t want to do that, but they were trying to get some room for the team if they needed a veteran point guard to come in for the playoffs, and I understood that. They said I was going to be in the NBA and just keep working hard.’

Hudson’s career in Boston may have been cut short, but he didn’t need long with the Celtics to gain invaluable lessons that he can share with his new teammates in Memphis.

‘I can tell them just to work hard,’ he said. ‘Because that’s why [the Celtics are] one of the best in the NBA right now.’

The Celtics recalled rookie Lester Hudson from the NBA Development League’s Maine Red Claws, the team announced on Wednesday. Hudson has played in five games for the Red Claws this season, averaging 14.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists.

The Celtics reassigned rookie Lester Hudson to the NBA Development League’s Maine Red Claws, the team announced on Saturday. This will be Hudson’s second D-League stint this season. He was assigned to the Red Claws earlier this month and averaged 16.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists in three games.

‘I learned a lot,’ he previously told WEEI.com about his first assignment. ‘I learned a lot about the pick-and-roll, team defense. Those were things my coach, (head coach) Doc [Rivers] and (President of Basketball Operations) Danny [Ainge] told me to work on so I tried to work on that and I think I got a little better at that. I’ve just got to work hard on every possession. I got in a little better shape because I was playing a lot of minutes in those three games, so I’m going to try not to get out of shape.’

BOSTON ‘ Lester Hudson only played three games for the Maine Red Claws but his short time in the NBA Development League was beneficial.

The rookie was assigned to the Celtics D-League affiliate on December 15 and recalled just five days later to fill out the Cs roster. During that short span Hudson averaged 16.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game, including a 25-point debut performance.

‘I learned a lot,’ he told WEEI.com on Sunday. ‘I learned a lot about the pick-and-roll, team defense. Those were things my coach, (head coach) Doc [Rivers] and (President of Basketball Operations) Danny [Ainge] told me to work on so I tried to work on that and I think I got a little better at that. Read the rest of this entry »

The Celtics recalled rookie Lester Hudson from the NBA Development League’s Maine Red Claws, the team announced on Sunday. Hudson averaged 16.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 4.7 assists in three games with the Red Claws.

Celtics rookie Lester Hudson scored a game-high 25 points in his NBDL debut as the Maine Red Claws defeated the Erie BayHawks, 81-77, on Wednesday night. Hudson, who was assigned to the NBA Development League on Tuesday, premiered with an impressive stat line: 8-19 FG, 4-9 3PG, 5-6 FT, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 block. He had previously scored a total of 11 points in 13 games with the Cs.

Hudson was assisted by fellow Celtic Bill Walker. The forward scored 16 points off of 7-for-18 shooting and grabbed six boards. Walker entered the game leading the Red Claws in scoring and rebounding.

Just as the Celtics are riding a winning streak, the Red Claws have won their last six games.

‘He’s on a very good team where it’s very difficult to get minutes, but that hasn’t sidetracked his work,’ Doc Rivers told the Boston Herald prior to Monday’s Celtics-Grizzlies game. ‘We’re going to send him down pretty soon to the NBDL for a week or so to get him some games, because I don’t like our young guys going these long stretches without playing games. And then we’re going to bring him back. I think that will help him.’

Celtics forward Bill Walker was assigned to their D-League affiliate earlier in the season.